Missing Heir
by Yaminoko-Jeichan
Summary: He always thought that he and Mokuba were Gozaboro's only children only to find out that the man had a son named Noa. What happens when he finds out that there is more to the story than what he knows?
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: This chapter is a prologue to the main story describing the OC, but it's not necessary to read this chapter if you're put off that the canon characters aren't seen in this chapter. (If this is the case, skip this chapter and read the chapter after this one first. You can always read this one later.)_

Rain pelted down from dark, ominous storm clouds shrouding the sky from the earth below, soaking the land with puddles and mud. Night descended early today because of the storm, encasing the city in darkness and rendering the busyness of a weekend night motionless, except for one lone person running through the empty wet streets hurriedly.

Dressed in a trench coat too large for her, with many more layers of clothing underneath as revealed by the bumpiness of the coat, her shoes, holey and mud covered about a size or two too large, the person, a girl, fifteen years old, ran down the road checking behind her every now and then, rushing as though trying to lose someone who followed her. Though her body moved quickly, intent on her purpose, her blue eyes showed the weariness that comes from living a harsh, cruel life, experiencing life's terrible limits, and enduring it all unbreakably but ending up scarred to the bone.

Turning onto an alley, not slowing down even a fraction, the girl continued on, the pouring rain drenching her through each layer of worn and tattered clothing, one of her shoes becoming loose and falling off her foot—she didn't notice, since the shoe's bottom were so worn out and holey that it made no difference. Across the blacktop off the alley, stones and glass slivers littering the ground, she ran not minding or even noticing the scratches and cuts forming on her already scarred and blistered foot, with the toenails chewed down low enough to bleed.

No, she couldn't mind or even check on her foot, not when someone needed her desperately, that would be selfish, since she had promised she'd take care of that someone and that person would do the same for her. So she didn't stop until she reached the outside entrance into a basement, the cellar doors twisted and broken from their hinges, the steps leading down drenched and rough, some broken to pieces. The entrance to home.

"Meimuko? I'm back, I've brought food." The girl whispered, not to keep silent but because her voice was shot from a cold she'd had for three days, now aggravated by the run through the rain, but she didn't care. Meimuko needed food, that's all that mattered, that's all she cared about.

"K-Lyn? K-Lyn? That you? Please tell me it's you." A frightened voice called from the dark corner of the room, pathetic and weak.

"Yes, it's me, it's me. You'll be all right, I'm here." The girl, K-Lyn, replied stepping into the darkness, taking out of her pockets cans and packages of food and placing them on a rickety and ragged table beside a kerosene lantern that had dimmed down to nothing. Filling the lantern, K-Lyn lit it, blinking rapidly until her eyes got used to the brightness, then turning to look at Meimuko, a girlish woman, skin and bones, shivering under a woolen blanket, sweaty with fever, looking at K-Lyn with weary but hopeful brown eyes.

"It's raining…I'm cold…." Meimuko whispered tears falling from her eyes, then a coughing fit struck her, and K-Lyn found another blanket in the room and wrapped Meimuko up with it.

"Should I sing you a song?" K-Lyn whispered, smiling, weak but sweetly at Meimuko, holding her in her arms that were just as thin and weak as Meimuko's.

"But your voice, it's strained enough from your cold. And you've already went to get food for me, in this horrible weather. You do too much."

"Nonsense, you're sicker than I am, so you're my number one priority.' K-Lyn cooed, and began humming a melody, cut off when Meimuko put her fingers on her lips.

"But I'm older; I should be responsible for you."

"Age doesn't matter when you're sick."

"But I'm twenty-five. I should be taking care of you." Meimuko replied tears welling up in her eyes, her pale lips trembling as she struggled to give K-Lyn one of her blankets. "And you're all wet, running out in the rain like that when you're sick; I couldn't live with myself if you came down any sicker than you are just to take care of me."

"But you're too sick yourself. Besides, I've brought aspirin for you to take; it'll lower your fever." K-Lyn replied, handing Meimuko the vial.

"You should take some as well, there's enough here." Meimuko took two and gave the vial back to K-Lyn, eyeing the food hungrily and curiously. "Is there a receipt?"

"No." K-Lyn replied, opening a can of baked beans with a gleaming pocket knife, and then passing it to Meimuko.

"You shouldn't steal."

"But we need the food and medicine."

"…I feel so terrible, you having to steal just to feed me. If I weren't around you'd never have to worry. Maybe it'd be better if I was dead…."

"No! Don't even think that! Even if I never met you I'd still be homeless, and I'd probably be helping someone else just like you. Besides, without you, where would I find the motivation to continue living myself?"

"…K-Lyn…." Meimuko clung to K-Lyn trembling, tears pouring from her eyes like the rain outside. "You're so good to me, I'm sorry."

"No need to apologize, just rest." K-Lyn whispered humming a soft lullaby until the youthful woman fell asleep, shivering even in sleep.

The next morning, sunlight shining through the open cellar door, warming the inside of the basement, K-Lyn awoke, sweaty and feverish, trembling as she lay next to the sitting Meimuko, wrapped in the blankets the woman was wrapped with the night before.

"Meimuko? Your cold, you need these blankets more than I do."

"I'm sorry, K-Lyn." Meimuko spoke tears falling from her eyes. "I had to do it."

"What? Meimuko? What is it?" K-Lyn asked, sitting up, barely aware that someone else stood by the steps of the cellar. "Huh?"

"Is this the girl?" The person, a man dressed in a clean and neat shirt and blue jeans asked Meimuko, glancing at K-Lyn.

"Yes." Meimuko replied, avoiding K-Lyn's eyes as the girl looked from the woman to the man.

"Meimuko, what…?"

"Miss K-Lyn, I'm from child protective services, and am here to take you to a new home." The man spoke stepping up to K-Lyn, who winced like she'd been struck.

"What? Meimuko…what?"

"I'm sorry, K-Lyn. I'm so sorry, but I couldn't bear to see you struggle for me."

"Meimuko…but…." K-Lyn mumbled tears falling from her eyes as the man led her out of the basement, trembling from fear and cold. "How could you?"

"I'm sorry, K-Lyn, I'm so sorry."

"But how could you?" K-Lyn whispered remembering that day when Meimuko gave her over to the child protective services man, remembering how he brought her to an orphanage in Domino City where she was the oldest child and where they kept a close watch on her. For the first few weeks she wasn't allowed outside without an adult present—the risk that she'd run away was too high.

However, as soon as the security around her was lifted, she bolted, running away from the orphanage without looking back, yearning to make it back to her old haunts, but that would be impossible—they were in a different city. She was in a new place, with no knowledge of where anything was, wandering around aimlessly, when she stumbled onto the sight of a familiar skyscraper reaching for the clouds.

Staring intently at the skyscraper, face stoic, eyes gleaming from suppressed anger—it had been five years since she saw this building, five years since she felt the hatred burn through her from within drowning out all happiness and light. Now that hatred came back full-blown, drowning her in a sea of shadow and suppressed memories—how she abhorred the very sight of that building and the very name of the family who owned it— the name she should've been born with.

"Kaiba."


	2. Chapter 2

"Kaiba." K-Lyn seethed staring the Kaiba Corp. building, angry memories rushing through her mind; she never wanted to be back here, staring at that same menacing building that haunted her dreams. Hatred for that building surged through her, filling her heart and soul with an anger she hadn't felt for five years—the only years of freedom in her life.

Was it fate that she wound up back here? Only time could tell, unless she did something about it sooner—but what? Should she take what should've been rightfully hers? Should she?

"I don't know." K-Lyn whispered quietly, studying the building deep in thought for a moment before turning away at the sound of her rumbling stomach. First things first, she had to find something to eat, and then get some other things. So, quietly, K-Lyn walked away from the Kaiba corp. skyscraper, putting all thoughts not about food or shelter to the darkest corners of her mind.

Elsewhere, staring out the clear glass window of his office, wearing a white sleeveless jacket over close-fitting black pants and shirt, Seto Kaiba absentmindedly watched the ragged looking girl turn away, hurrying down the streets as it began raining lightly, wondering who she was and why she had stared at this building so long.

Not that it was significant in anyway, he was just curious that's all, time crawled by so slow these days, and today while he waited for someone to show up for an appointment with him the passage of time seemed to have vanished. At least he had the chance to look upon someone as beautiful as that girl—beautiful? Had he really thought that about her? A complete stranger?

Boredom must really be getting to him, to think he'd waste his time figuring out how attractive someone was; he had better things to do. Such as figuring what the person who made this appointment with him wanted—his name was Lloyd Tensen, and had apparently been his stepfather's Gozaboru's secret lawyer, at least he claimed to have been, Kaiba doubted someone like his father would hire someone like this Lloyd Tensen for any sort of business—the guy was a complete drunk and had yet to win a case in the past five years.

It was highly unlikely Gozaboru had ever known Mr. Tensen, though maybe Lloyd's fall from grace was because he loss his job as the late Kaiba's lawyer—Gozaboru had cut off all funding to Lloyd about a year before Seto took over Kaiba corp. so apparently this Lloyd had been fired.

However, what Lloyd would want with Seto was unanswerable; Kaiba was certain it concerned nothing about him. But he agreed to meet with Mr. Tensen just in case there were any secrets about his father that the man could tell him—Kaiba still couldn't forget about the whole Noa thing, and he refused to let another plot like that crop unexpectedly up on him again.

Moving away from the window, no longer curious about the world outside due to his growing impatience of waiting for Lloyd, Kaiba sat down in the cushioned chair at his desk, leaning forward on the desk with his hands clasped together. There he sat in impatient silence for a moment before a message came through the intercom device on his desk from his secretary.

"Mr. Kaiba, a Mr. Tensen is here, says he has an appointment, should I send him in?" The secretary asked through the intercom, unsure a tad—she was new, and hadn't gotten used to things yet.

"Send him in." Kaiba pressed the button on the intercom and spoke, annoyed that this new secretary hadn't the logic enough to just send the man in if he had an appointment—it would save time. But it couldn't be helped at the present—his last secretary had retired on short notice and there hadn't been time to find an adjacent replacement.

Looking up from the desk as the door opened, Kaiba expected to see the picture-image of a stereotyped drunk lawyer, ragged looking a bit though trying to appear presentable, however what he did see appalled him in his surprise.

White blond hair, straight, barely passing the ears, slender pale face and broad shoulders wearing a blue suit, Lloyd Tensen stood still in front of the door after shutting it, staring at the gaping Kaiba perplexed.

"Hello, Mr. Kaiba, apparently I wasn't what you were expecting." Lloyd spoke after a moment, put off by the intense silence that greeted his entry. "Did you picture me arriving here looking like some raggedly dressed, drunken vermin? Well, sorry, Mr. Kaiba, but unlike most excessive drinkers, I have the class and common decency to look presentable when time calls for it." The man seethed, though he did so in a voice that betrayed little rage, only a tad of indignation.

"Wha…no…I…." Kaiba stammered temporarily shocked by Lloyd's response, not knowing whether he disliked the man's gall, though Lloyd's indignation was misplaced—Kaiba hadn't stared because he had expected Lloyd to look terrible (even though he had) it was because the man's appearance reminded him of someone else. "I…you just remind me of some American I've met before, that's all." Kaiba replied, noticing only now that the man in front of him had blue eyes instead of brown, so he decided to focus on those eyes.

"Oh." Lloyd replied, his blue eyes turning blank, though the sudden twitch of his pursed lips suggested that he hid his anger.

"Be seated." Kaiba motioned to the chair in front of the desk, black and wooden, that, depending on the person and situation could be considered comfortable or not.

"Know this Mr. Kaiba, that I achieve everything I do on my own, and do not, and never have, used anything to heighten my advances except ability." The blond replied, and then relaxed his defensive tone, his blue eyes losing their stern quality quickly. However Kaiba's eyes now showed fiery indignation.

"What did you mean by that? You're bold, was that suppose to be an accusation? Well?"

"What?" Lloyd asked, purely bewildered at Kaiba's response, but quick thinking, he realized how Kaiba interrupted his words—and it wasn't the way the blond intended. "No, you mistake me, Mr. Kaiba…I'm distantly related to a high society family, and have always encountered those who thought I got where I am because of their name—and I've always hated it. I merely meant to impress upon you the fact that my success wasn't handed to me on a silver platter."

"Is that so?" The brown haired CEO muttered, closing his eyes briefly—Lloyd's bewilderment had answered his question before the man spoke a single word, it was genuine enough for Kaiba to know that Lloyd hadn't meant to accuse him of anything. "Mind telling me the name of your distant relative?"

"Actually, I do mind, I'd rather not mention that name in any discussion about myself—or in any discussion period." That response signaled the end of Lloyd's willingness to discuss the topic, and his wanting to continue with the official business of the meeting.

After a few moments of silence in which Kaiba continued to stare at Lloyd stoically cold, the young CEO spoke, his eyes never leaving Lloyd's.

"Very well, let's get down to business." Kaiba began, holding his hands clasped in front of him again. "You requested this appointment with me, because you've had business with my stepfather as one of his lawyers and say you have some things to discuss with me, right?"

"Yes. I have some inf…."

"I'm not done speaking, Mr. Tensen. One thing I want you to remember is I only agreed to this meeting because my stepfather's bank records show that he made monthly payments to you for quite a while before I took over the company. That's the only proof that exists that he knew you. And that's why I'm putting my judgment of you aside until after you tell me what you wish to." Kaiba then paused and waited for Lloyd to speak, smirking a little at the slight put off expression on the blond's face.

"Well, I have some documents that you may want to look at." Lloyd opened the briefcase, brown, that he brought into the room and took out a few sheets of paper, handing them to Kaiba after closing the briefcase. "As you can see that's…."

"…My stepfather's will." Kaiba muttered after glancing at the first sentence.

"Yes."

_So what did you readers think of this chapter so far? Can you figure out who it is that my Lloyd character is related to? Anyway, please review! Arigato!_


	3. Chapter 3

"…." Kaiba stared numbly at the document wondering whether he should continue reading—the company was safely his no matter what since he'd taken over before his stepfather's death. However, any possession or money that had been his stepfather's could be dictated to other relatives through this Will—though the only thing that was really significant was the mansion, and even if they lost that Kaiba Corp. produced enough income for him to buy a different home. So, there really was nothing that made this Will significant.

"So, Mr. Kaiba, you…."

"This is it?" Kaiba interrupted, placing the document on the desk and looking Lloyd straight in the eye. "This is all you wanted to show me?"

"Well, yes, I…."

"Heh, then you might as well leave. There's nothing significant enough in this Will for me to be concerned about—the company's mine and was before my stepfather died, and that's the only thing I'll ever be concerned about."

"But Mr. Kaiba, section six states…."

"That my Stepfather's biological children get first dibs on the house, fortune and any stocks he had invested in other companies unless they're unable to do so, then that property goes to his adoptive sons: in other words, Mokuba and I inherit everything. So there's no reason for you to remain in my presence."

"I think you should look more closely at what it says…."

"Enough wasting my time. Leave." Kaiba seethed, glaring at Lloyd, no longer wishing to be bothered—there was no point to this appointment anymore.

Sensing by Kaiba's hostility that he was no longer welcome, Lloyd stood up, picked up his brief case and turned toward the door.

"I'll leave that document here so you can reread it thoroughly—once you have, contact me."

"…." Kaiba only stared silently at Lloyd until the man left, and then he leaned back in his chair, sighing.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the city K-Lyn walked along the crowded sidewalks, some cans of food in her pockets—she had succeeded in shoplifting them without being noticed. Now she looked for some place where she could hide and eat—it would look strange for her to eat the canned food out in the open, people would be able to guess that she didn't have a home to eat in. If that happened then she might be sent back to the orphanage, and she refused to go back there.

Sneaking into an alleyway, K-Lyn rushed into the shadows, quickly finding a place to sit away from the view of any passerby. Taking out a pocket knife that she had also managed to steal she opened one of the cans and started eating the contents, not caring that she didn't have any spoon or fork to eat it with. She'd been on her own for so long that manners didn't matter to her anymore. At one time though, they did, and she had spent a huge amount of her concentration on practicing them to perfection. But that had been when she lived with her stepfather five years ago.

Now manners didn't matter; all that mattered was her ability to get by day to day, and experience had made her a master at that—five long years of experience. Those had been difficult years, but she preferred them to the years she lived with her stepfather—those were the years she struggled to forget but never could.

Finishing that first can, she opened another and ate that one without really tasting it—it wasn't enough to fill her, but it was enough to get her by, and for now that was all she needed. Tossing the empty cans in a dumpster, she walked out of the alley, blending in with the passing crowds of people but feeling separated from them.

Though she walked aimlessly, she ended up back in view of Kaiba Corp. this time on the opposite side of the building, the side with the front entrance. Transfixed for some reason on the entrance, K-Lyn continued to stare at it, standing still as the crowds continued to pass her by.

That's when she saw him, walking out of the doors carrying a briefcase, his hair blond and ear length, his blue eyes narrowed. She felt numbness fill her body at the sight of him along with anger—she never wanted to see him again. But there he was in plain view walking swiftly away from the building he exited, his gait all too familiar to her, and she felt a shiver of fear spread through her body; she could still recognize that he was angry about something by the way he walked even though she hadn't seen him for the past five years.

Why did fate bring her to the city he was currently living in? Was it destiny that she'd end up here after running as far away as she could five years ago after her brother's death? A brother who hadn't even known she existed, but who she still grieved over with guilt in her heart. Guilt—such a strong emotion that caused her to shiver with fear and regret even now years later. And it wasn't just guilt for her lost brother that she felt, but also remorse for two others whom she had loved. Three servings of guilt for one stunted and malnourished heart.

Though no breeze blew, she shivered and shook her head, forcing herself to forego all emotion and become cold—just like she should have a long time ago.

It was then she realized, then that she remembered, what building she had seen him walk out from, and icy fury ran through her veins. Kaiba corp.—that company had been, and still was, the nucleus of her problems, and now it seemed fate chose it to become the focal point for her revenge; destiny would make it the alpha and omega of her life's purpose. She'd pave the road of vengeance, build the tower of mastery, and, when that final part was smooth and the last brick laid, she'd be victorious—and no one would hurt, or have control over, her again.

Later on that day, around dusk, Kaiba relaxed in the luxuriously huge tub in the bathroom connected to his bedroom. He had left his office at Kaiba corp. just an hour ago, relieved that the day finally arrived at its close. Upon entering the mansion he'd headed straight for his room to rest, detouring once to check on Mokuba before continuing on. Everything that morning had been fine until his meeting with Lloyd, after that his nerves seemed frazzled and his temper quick—there was just something about the man that rubbed him the wrong way. That wasn't strange though, Kaiba had met many people who he disliked for one reason or another, but it was always just dislike and never affected him so much.

Only those who threatened him, or Mokuba, did he hate, but now Lloyd seemed an exception to that rule. For some reason unknown Kaiba didn't like Lloyd, didn't trust him. But that could be attributed to the fact that Lloyd's appearance reminded him strongly of someone else—someone he hated and would never forgive even if the world were offered him in exchange.

Kaiba tried to think of other things—things to help him relax, but Lloyd's appearance nagged at him and kept nagging until he gritted his teeth and forced himself to think of nothing and just stare at the opposite wall of the bathroom.

That's when a different image sprouted up in his thoughts—the image of the girl he saw outside just before his meeting with Lloyd. Something about her ensnared his curiosity and interest, and pulled his thoughts toward her. Rarely did Kaiba feel anything significant about the opposite sex, he never fantasized about girls, nor did he remember ever having a crush on one—he'd always been too busy to think about such trifles, with Mokuba to take care of and the company to run. And when his stepfather was alive, Kaiba was kept so busy with schoolwork that he didn't have any time of his own except to sleep and eat, and even that time was brief.

He'd grown accustomed to not thinking about girls at all, but somehow the girl he saw today from his office window held all of his attention and awakened within him a yearning he never felt before, a yearning that put a blush on his face and frustration in his mind.

Why did thinking of that strange girl bring about that response in his body? What made that girl significant compared to all of the others he'd seen before? She was more attractive than some, but not all, of the girls he'd met before, and though he couldn't speak for her personality (having only seen her once) he was sure he'd met others who he'd get along with better. So why her? What nameless, unknown quality did she have solely that attracted him so that now blushed in his struggle to suppress that part of his body?

He'd rather he'd kept thinking about Lloyd, at least anger was something he knew about and could deal with.

Abruptly his thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the bathroom door and Mokuba's voice asking him if he was all right.

"I'm fine, Mokuba. Why do you ask?" Kaiba replied as he sighed quietly.

"You seemed a bit more tired than usual when you came home." Mokuba answered from behind the closed door.

"I'm fine, Mokuba."

"Oh, um…your meeting with that Mr. Tensen was today, wasn't it?"

_So, that's what he's concerned about._ Kaiba realized, Mokuba wanted to know what Lloyd had wanted (Kaiba had told him that Lloyd had been their stepfather's lawyer, though he now wondered if he should have done so).

"There's nothing to worry about, Mokuba. Mr. Tensen showed me our stepfather's will, but there wasn't anything in there that we need to worry about." Kaiba reassured his brother, closing his eyes temporarily as he thought of the will again, and wondered why Lloyd had been so obsessed that he'd read it thoroughly. A waste of time that was, nothing of significance was in that will—and that section of the will that Lloyd seemed obsessed with, the one that said his stepfather's biological children were first in line to inherit….

"AH!" Kaiba suddenly realized why Lloyd had obsessed over that part of the will; it said 'biological children'—children!

_No way, Gozaboru didn't have more than one biological child—._ Kaiba screamed in his thoughts denying that it was possible, but then another thought, more logical than the other spoke up. _It's possible that he did…and probable too, since it's highly unlikely that the word _children_ being in the will was a mistake. Especially since Lloyd made a big deal about it._ Kaiba drew a breath at the thought, realizing that Lloyd must know if his stepfather had more than one child, and he should know where to find that child as well.

Quickly Kaiba got out of the tub and dressed, almost hitting Mokuba when he opened the bathroom door. After muttering a brief apology to his brother, Kaiba got his cell phone and searched for the letter he'd received from Lloyd when the man first requested their meeting—it had a phone number on it where he could reach Lloyd.

Dialing the number Kaiba tried not to think too much, at least not until he had the answers he sought, and when Lloyd's voice answered he was quick to demand them.

"Lloyd, tell me all you know about my stepfather's biological children."


	4. Chapter 4

"Lloyd, tell me all you know about my stepfather's biological children." Kaiba demanded after he heard Lloyd's voice on the other end say hello.

"So you read it thoroughly." Lloyd drawled, not even attempting to answer Kaiba's demands.

"Tell me about the children, damn it. How many more are there?" Kaiba seethed pacing the floor of his bedroom angrily and frustrated by how Lloyd took his time in answering.

"There were originally two, but one died, so only one is left."

"And? What's his name and where can I find him?"

"Her; the child that's still alive is a girl—by the name of Kailyn."

"Oh, where is she? Where can I find her?"

"I…um…well…."

"Yes?" Kaiba narrowed his eyes, noticing only then that Mokuba was still in the room looking afraid and anxious. Quietly Kaiba whispered for his brother to leave, reassuring him that there was nothing to worry about. However, he was certain he hadn't convinced him of that.

"You see, Mr. Kaiba, I…I don't know where she is right now."

"Urr…that has to be a lie, if my stepfather entrusted you with the knowledge and holding of the Will, he'd have also demanded for you to know where the beneficiaries, his children, are. So you should know."

"Mr. Kaiba, I…you're right that I did know where she was—she was in my custody for many years, but…."

"What? My stepfather entrusted his daughter to a drunk?"

"I wasn't a drunk at the time." Lloyd replied indignantly, and then calmed down. "Those monthly payments are proof—he was paying for her expenses, as well as paying me for caring for her."

"That would explain why he paid so much." Kaiba mumbled, remembering the amount of money paid Lloyd per month—a large sum even for a lawyer. "Those payments stopped a year before I took over."

"Yes, Kailyn ran away and your stepfather found out about it—he refused to pay me again until she was found."

"…And you haven't found her yet, have you?"

"No, but I have some information that could help you find her, along with some photos. You could come to my office and pick them up if you like."

"No, you bring them to Kaiba Corp. tomorrow, noon. I have no other appointments then."

"Okay, have a good night then, Mr. Kaiba."

"Yeah, goodbye." Kaiba hung up and then laid down on his bed mind buzzing with a torrent of thoughts and suspicions. Assuming that Kailyn had run away during the year Gozaboru stopped making those payments, she'd been missing for less than two years—but something disturbed Kaiba about that idea. Namely—why didn't his stepfather take in Kailyn after Noa's death? Or even if not then, why didn't he take in her when he grew suspicious of Seto's plan to take over his company? Gozaboru must've care a lot about her if he'd pay Lloyd so much to care for her, but why didn't he care enough to choose her first instead of Seto or Mokuba? Did he prefer having sons?

That would be the only reason, Kaiba thought, remembering what his stepfather had wanted in an heir—he had wanted someone ruthless, with a business set mind to run the company, not some whiny, spoiled girl, which, with the amount of money spent on her, Kailyn would have to be.

Exhausted, Kaiba closed his eyes and quickly fell asleep, not even bothering to get under the covers.

The next day, waking up behind a dumpster, cold and not at all rested, K-Lyn felt her stomach growl, and she groaned as she opened her last can of food. After she'd finished eating she walked out of the alley where the dumpster was located, tossing out her can in the dumpster as she did so.

She'd had a dream last night, a dream about her past, about her life while she lived with Lloyd. Bittersweet it was more of a recollection than a dream, and K-Lyn missed those times—for they weren't all horrible.

While she had slept, she dreamt about one of the times she'd visited Lloyd's relatives in America. At the time Lloyd introduced her as his stepdaughter—which, she suppose was true since her birthmother had been married to Lloyd before she died.

During this visit, Lloyd insisted on dressing up in only the best, most high-class attire, in hopes that he could impress his estranged family.

_Grand and elaborate in its décor, Lloyd's father's mansion dazzled K-Lyn who'd never seen anything so magnificent in her life; as far back as she could remember she'd lived with her stepfather in a small apartment in Japan that didn't compare to the size and quality of her step-grandfather's mansion. Made breathless by the grandeur of the mansion, she'd stood close by her stepfather as he greeted his relatives and introduced her to them._

"_Lloyd, how nice of you to show up." A voice spoke from their right, in a tone that suggested false cheeriness._

"_Hello brother." Lloyd half-smiled, his eyes glittering with jealous annoyance as he stared at the man who'd greeted him._

_With blond hair the same shade and tint as Lloyd's, but of longer length, and his eyes auburn brown, this man, who was actually a young man of sixteen, chuckled uncomfortably as though struggling to remain polite. His skin had the smoothness of someone a few years younger than his age though he was already as tall as Lloyd who was twenty-eight years old then._

"_Half-brother." The sixteen year old muttered, his lips barely moving, and I doubt anyone except me and Lloyd heard what he said. "You and I are only half-related."_

"_And I'm heartily glad of that." Lloyd replied as the teen's eyes shone with fiery indignation._

"_And what do you mean by that, Lloyd?"_

_Before Lloyd could reply a beautiful lady, wearing a blue, white trimmed dress interrupted, linking her arm with the teen boy's._

"_Pegasus, dear, aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?" She asked, her voice soft and melodious to my ears, her appearance captivating my eyes. Hair colored like an early spring's sun fell past her waist, seeming like delicate silk, while her eyes were baby blue, and sparkled with happiness._

"_Um, Cyndia, this…" Pegasus fought to conceal his animosity of Lloyd form the lady, Cyndia. "This is my half-brother Lloyd Tensen, Cyndia. Lloyd, this is Cyndia, my fiancée."_

"_Nice to meet you, Lloyd."_

"_The pleasure's all mine." Lloyd took Cyndia's hand and gently pressed against his lips, never taking his eyes off her. "The presence of someone as beautiful as you makes me feel at though I'm in paradise."_

"…_." Pegasus glared at Lloyd, lips pressed in a thin line and eyes narrowed as he bristled with displeasure._

_Lloyd did not notice, or at least didn't show that he noticed, his half-brother's displeasure as he continued to speak with Cyndia, saying such romantic things that the lady blushed with shy appreciation at his attention._

_Struggling to control his indignation, Pegasus fidgeted uncomfortably for a moment before averting his eyes, noticing K-Lyn for the first time._

"_Why, Lloyd, you seem to have forgotten to introduce us to your guest." He chirped, smiling at K-Lyn before shifting his gaze back to Lloyd who seemed peeved by the interruption._

"_Oh, Lloyd, she's adorable." Cyndia smiled delightfully at K-Lyn who moved closer to Lloyd shyly. "Is she yours?"_

"_She's my stepdaughter Kailyn."_

"_She looks so precious in that pale yellow dress, with her hair so carefully done." Cyndia smiled reaching down to touch K-Lyn's lightly green-tinted hair that fell past the girl's shoulders, curling just slightly in front. "Oh, I'd like to have a daughter like her someday."_

Sadly K-Lyn remembered Cyndia's beautifully gentle smile, remembered the kindness in her voice and felt grief and guilt return to her heart. Wholeheartedly she missed the woman, had missed her for the past seven years, and regretted having met her just a year before she died.

A shiver ran up her spine though no breeze blew, touching her to her soul as though trying to force her to remember something she didn't want to, something she wouldn't let herself remember.

"It's no use trying to drag up memories, the past remains the past." Bitterly she walked along the sidewalk feeling her body grow numb as she repressed the other memories striving to gain the forefront of her thoughts.

While she walked she stole a glance at a passerby's watch, shocked at what time it was—11:00 AM. Had she really slept in that long after going to sleep the night before so early? She hadn't realized she'd been so exhausted.

After sighing in audibly, K-Lyn continued walking down the sidewalk looking briefly at each storefront to figure out from which she could shoplift, when a muffled noise from an alleyway caught her attention. It was barely distinguishable, but having lived on the streets for five years, K-Lyn knew it for what it was—someone struggling to scream or get away from someone.

Even though she knew it'd be safer to mind her business, K-Lyn stepped toward the sound, curiosity winning her over. Quietly she snuck to where she could see what was going on, and had to force herself not to gasp at what she saw. Two punks held a child with black hair, tied up and gagged between them, laughing as the boy struggled.

_He can't be any older than ten_. K-Lyn realized, fury slowly replacing her fear, and she inched closer so that she could hear what they were saying.

"Wonder how much his brother will pay for ransom."

"At least a couple million, maybe more. Heh."

"You think we should take some of our own payment from the kid?"

"Sure, heh, heh."

_Congragulations to Psycho Demon-Witch and Amarie Miriel for correctly guessing that Lloyd was related to Pegasus._


	5. Chapter 5

_I've read over the previous chapter and realized that I accidently switched from third person POV to first person POV, oops, sorry about that if you noticed. I'll correct it eventually._

The two punks moved closer to the bound boy, smirking as they held him down. It took only the sight of one of them moving their hand under the young boy's shirt for K-Lyn to snap and lunge at the punks.

Blood spurted out of the closest one's mouth and nose when she punched him in the face, sending him to the asphalt before he knew what happened. Swirling quickly to her left, K-Lyn went after the second punk, who stood on guard now, his surprise giving way to anger. He was ready when K-Lyn lunged and made as though to punch him, but he didn't expect her attack with the knife.

In her left hand K-Lyn held her pocketknife, its cool steel blade gleaming once as it glided to the punk's skin. A slashing motion and the punk backed away in agony, his hand clutching his lower abdomen close to his inner thigh. Not pausing for a second, K-Lyn punched the punk in the face with her right fist, causing him to fall to the asphalt as well.

Lips pursed, eyes narrowed she glared at the fallen punks, boys no older than sixteen, who, while unconscious, looked more pathetic. Gripping her pocketknife tighter, she stepped closer to the punks, her eyes gleaming with wild hatred. Hatred that blinded her so that she lunged at the unconscious punks, motioning as though she'd stab them both furiously.

However, a muffled cry from behind her broke her irrational anger—the young boy she rescued was still bound and gagged. Turning around K-Lyn went to the bound ten-year-old, who seemed wary and relieved at the sight of her. In one swift motion, K-Lyn used her pocketknife to sever the ropes that bound the kid's arms and legs, and then did the same to the gag.

Free from his bonds the boy backed away from K-Lyn, and tried to stand, but he was trembling too much and his limbs felt weak.

"Careful…maybe you should relax for a sec." K-Lyn changed her tone to one a person acquires when comforting a child who had a nightmare. Hesitantly she placed her hand on the boy's long black hair, and gently stroked it, a caress that soothed the boy. It was now that she noticed the bruise on the side of the boy's face and the bump on his head. _Those punks did this._

"…thank you…." The boy looked up at K-Lyn, his eyes shining with trust and gratitude. "Thank you for saving me."

"Don't mention it. I should get you home; your parents must be worried about you."

"…I don't have parents only my brother."

"You're an orphan?" K-Lyn's eyes softened when the boy nodded, and she wrapped her arms around him in a warm hug, feeling her own pain over the boy's—she was as good as an orphan herself; hell, it's been five years, she could truly be one. "What's your name?"

"Mokuba; Mokuba Ka—" The boy collapsed in K-Lyn's arms before he could give his full name, his skin pale.

"Shit." Her eyes widened and she tried to get the boy to regain consciousness. Failing at that, she looked around wildly, wondering what to do when she saw one of the unconscious punks stirring. After laying the boy, Mokuba, whom she held in her arms, on the asphalt, she went over to the awakening punk and knocked him out again, so that she'd have time to think.

_I can't move him if I don't know the extent of his injuries._ K-Lyn chewed on her bottom lip and furrowed her eyebrows as she stared at the unconscious Mokuba. She needed to call an ambulance, and for that she needed a phone—something she didn't have since stealing one from a store wasn't as easy as stealing food. _Of course!_

Quickly she turned back to the two punks, and rummaged her hand through their pockets—if they had kidnapped the boy for ransom; they'd have a phone or money on them. Sure enough, she found a cell phone in the first punk's jean pocket, completely charged.

"Idiots, you should've stuck with using payphones, the police can easily track a cell phone." K-Lyn shook her head and then glanced back at Mokuba, only then realizing that she didn't know what street they were on. _Damn, I can't leave him alone those two might wake up._ "But then again…." A sly grin spread to her lips as she eyed the cut rope laying on the alley blacktop.

Two minutes later she had the punks tied up tightly, and had dialed the hospital to send an ambulance. Before the ambulance arrived, she made sure to untie the punks—she didn't want to make any trouble for herself—and put the cell phone back in the one punk's pocket. However, the ambulance was there before she could leave to avoid questions, and since she looked so thin, they brought her to the hospital as well.

"How many times do I have to tell you, I'm not sick or anorexic?" K-Lyn nearly growled at the nurse who insisted on giving her a physical, and kept asking where her parents were.

"You have to be something, you're five feet five, and weigh only eighty-eight pounds. You don't have any fat on your body, only muscle—so don't try to convince me nothing's wrong."

"I'm not sick or anorexic."

"Oh really?"

"Really; excuse me; because I'm leaving now, I've had enough of this hospital." K-Lyn stood and left the room before the nurse could protest, and walked briskly down the hall until she found the room where Mokuba rested. Seeing him lying so still on the hospital bed with the intravenous tubes bound to his wrist, K-Lyn's breath caught in her throat and her heartbeat increased.

It was so much like before, the lights, the young boy lying still on the bed, the very layout of the room reminded her of a time, five years ago, when her brother landed in the hospital after a serious accident. No older than ten at the time, her brother never regained consciousness, only lain there on the hospital bed unresponsive, tubes going through his arms and nose.

Numbness filled her body at that memory, leaving her oblivious to her surroundings—she had to convince herself that it wasn't like before, the child, Mokuba, wasn't injured fatally.

"I want to see my brother, what room's he in?" A gruff voice broke through K-Lyn's thoughts, and she turned her gaze to see a young man, maybe around his mid-teens, barely waiting for the doctor to answer him before swiftly enter the room to which the doctor pointed.

K-Lyn felt her heart rate increase as her eyes drunk up his appearance—short brown hair, and blue, angry eyes that scowled at everything. He didn't notice her as he brushed by her into the room where Mokuba rested, nor did he notice that the doctor wanted to speak to him.

_That must be his brother._ K-Lyn gazed into the room at him sitting by his brother's hospital bed; in his haste the brown haired teen forgot to shut the room door, and K-Lyn felt compelled to watch them. On an impulse, she stepped inside the room door, remaining completely silent as she watched the older teen touch the younger boy's black hair gingerly.

Moving her gaze to the teen's blue eyes K-Lyn saw the tenderness and worry in them as the teen continued staring at his brother.

"Mokuba…." K-Lyn heard the teen whisper as he blinked his watery eyes and trembled almost unnoticeably. However, the next moment the tremble left, his eyes narrowed and filled with anger, and his lips pursed into a rigid line. Face rigid from rage, the teen turned away from the bed and toward the door where he saw K-Lyn standing.

_Please review. Right now I'm trying to decide pairings for some of my other stories, so if you have any couples that you want to see tell me in your review (doesn't have to be Yu-Gi-Oh related, but must be of an anime/manga I know. Check my profile for what shows I watch.)_


	6. Chapter 6

Kaiba gasped and his eyes widened as he stared at the girl in the doorway—it was the girl he'd seen from his office window yesterday, he was sure of it. But why was she here? Did she have anything to do with what happened to his brother?

"Who are you, and why are you here?" Kaiba glared at the girl, silently taking in the sight of her greenish hair and blue eyes, his attention captivated by her appearance. She was beautiful, though she seemed too thin, and she wore ill-fitting clothes.

"The name's K-Lyn and I'm the one who called for the ambulance for your brother."

Surprised, Kaiba stepped back and glanced once more at his brother resting on the bed, before returning his gaze to K-Lyn.

"Do you know who did this to Mokuba?"

"Two punks, one of which I'm sure is somewhere in this hospital since I cut him pretty deep." K-Lyn replied and then turned to leave the room.

"Wait, I…did you save Mokuba?"

"Yeah." K-Lyn shrugged and walked out the room without waiting for Kaiba's reply.

Hesitantly Kaiba stared after K-Lyn, but didn't follow; instead, he turned back to Mokuba and watched as he slept.

Walking unhesitatingly to the ground floor of the hospital, K-Lyn glared at anyone who looked at her—she didn't need people looking at her strangely, and wondering why she was here.

Most people who saw her noticed her figure more than anything else, and, by how thin she was, most thought she was ill or anorexic—she could tell by their pitying stares what they thought.

She wasn't anorexic—god knows she'd eat until her stomach hurt if she could, but she never could steal enough food. Even when she was sick she forced herself to eat, for how else could she keep up her strength to do what she must? God, she felt jealous of those who had the luxury to become anorexic or ill for they didn't have to struggle so hard to survive, they always had someone to look out for them. She had to look out for herself and couldn't afford to obsess about looks or health—but god knows she wished she could.

Narrowing her blank, blue eyes, K-Lyn gritted her teeth and ignored the continuing stares of passerby, though it was on her tongue to say something so ugly no one would forget it.

Something held her back from walking out the door; something pulled her to look around when she'd rather leave. She didn't know what compelled her though; she hated hospitals. Too many times she visited people in hospitals to not know the truth—these were buildings of death, that tried futilely to save life until the dark reaper took it away in one un-seeable rush. Most people who live, die in hospitals and nowhere else is death's stain so proficient. The dead may lie in cemeteries, but they died in hospitals—or on their way to one. So what was so great about hospital?

Three times K-Lyn visited people in a hospital, and three times she lost someone to death in one—so where was the good in one?

Tensing, K-Lyn averted wary eyes to look at the décor and furnishings, trying to avoid the passerby. Oh, god, she gulped when her gaze flitted to a familiar painting; the furnishings below it were familiar as well. Never had she wanted to see this place again, but after five years of being away she wound up in this hospital, its layout unchanged; the hospital in which her brother died.

Tears glistened in her eyes, though she held them at bay; there were too many horrible memories in her mind of this place.

She lost her brother here—a brother who never knew of her and whom she could only watch from afar, who had everything when she had nothing. But her brother nonetheless, even though she had hated him before he died, before the accident.

Maybe it was guilt numbing her hatred, and cutting at her heartstrings, guilt that bound her indignation and jealousy so that she hated being here but couldn't leave. Regret, such a familiar word to her, she lived it everyday, in every moment and breath though she tried to forget.

Though she tried to forget, her mind played the memories over and over in movie fashion, taking her back five years before.

_Everything around her was a blur as she ran, terrified of all the strange sights and unfamiliar faces, her palms sweaty, and lips trembling. Nowhere around was there a friendly face; hardly anyone noticed her, instead they hurried in the direction whence she came._

_Heart pounding and legs sore from her long strides, she continued running, her lungs burning, until she saw a street she recognized. Turning onto that street, still running on the sidewalk, she thought her lungs would burst before she'd get to where she needed. Her long, greenish hair trailing like a flag behind her from her pace, she blinked her blue eyes to hold back the tears._

You pushed him, pushed him.

_The tears gushed into her eyes more readily, blurring her vision as she kept them from falling._

"_Papa, papa, where are you?" A weak, helpless voice escaped her lips, followed by a sob, dry since she held back her tears. Straining to make her eyes clear without crying, she looked around wildly until she saw the familiar eyes, hair and clothes of her stepfather._

"_Papa!" She clung to him desperately, trying to ignore her screaming thoughts. _You pushed him, pushed him._ "I did whatcha told me to, papa." She clung tighter to her stepfather's unresponsive arm, holding her tears at bay—her stepfather hated tears. "I did—don'tcha love me, papa?" She trembled seeing the icy glare in his eyes, and the thin rigid line of his lips. "Papa, don'tcha? I did whatcha said, I pushed N…."_

_Swiftly her stepfather's hand clamped over her mouth, his eyes narrowed and he gritted his teeth._

"_Never mention this again." He let go of her then. "Now go home."_

"_But papa…."_

"_Go home!"_

"_But…." The sharp pain of her stepfather's slap shocked her as she fell to the sidewalk, her eyes filling with tears again. Looking only once at her stepfather's furious expression, she stood up and trembled, backing slowly away hesitant to do as her stepfather said._

"_Kailyn, go home." He made to hit her again, and she darted away, trembling more than she had been._

Feeling numb, K-Lyn placed her hand over her mouth, feeling her throat tighten, as she felt detached from her surroundings.

"Are you all right?" A voice from behind her asked and she felt someone place his or her hand on her shoulder.

"Don't touch me." K-Lyn shrugged off the hand roughly, turning to glare at who was behind her. "What do you want?"

"To talk to you, I didn't thank you for saving my brother." Kaiba replied his lips twitching as he kept his temper in check. "There was no reason to snap at me."

"Hm, you don't need to thank me."

"Yes I do, my brother means everything to me. Now if you'll allow me to thank you properly, tell me what you want and I'll get you it." Kaiba crossed his arms in front of him, his brown eyes studying K-Lyn closely as she shrugged.


	7. Chapter 7

_Thanks for the correction Amarie Miriel, when I wrote the chapter I didn't have a pic of Kaiba, but I think I was thinking of the color of his hair when I wrote that sentence (I always do that, think of one thing and write it as another). I'll correct the mistake eventually._

"There's nothing I want, and if there were I doubt you'd be able to get me it." K-Lyn turned away from Kaiba and walked out the hospital, denying she wanted anything even as her stomach growled.

Food—that was all she needed, but she couldn't bring herself to say that to the brown-haired teen. Who knew what he would think, if he'd figure she was homeless and if he did he'd probably pity her, and she couldn't stand pity.

"Wait." Kaiba's gruff voice called to her from only a few feet behind.

"Quit following me."

"Not until I pay you back."

"I don't need anything."

"Oh really? Heh, first of all, I said want, not need, and second, it seems you need a lot you don't know about."

"Like what?"

"Someone with connections to get your name dropped from the police report. Those punks claim you used excessive force on them." Kaiba smirked slightly when K-Lyn finally turned to face him, no longer trying to get away.

"I did not use excessive force."

"You call 'near castration' not excessive?" He crossed his arms in front of him as he waited for her response.

"With what he and his buddy were trying to do to your brother, he deserved worse."

"What?" Kaiba's eyes narrowed and his body stiffened as he glared harshly at K-Lyn. "They tried to do _what_ to Mokuba?"

"They were putting their hands in places I dare not mention."

"WHAT!" Kaiba's face contorted with anger and his fists clenched. Turning back to face the hospital he clenched his teeth, his fist shaking from rage, but he remained where he stood and averted his gaze back to K-Lyn. She too stood staring at the hospital, eyes narrowed, lips pursed, but the next moment her eyes closed and she collapsed to the ground, unresponsive to Kaiba who rushed forward to catch her.

Horrified, he tried to awaken her but failed, muttering under his breath when he realized just how thin she was. Picking her up he brought her back to the hospital, thankful that she hadn't got too far away before he caught up—he'd have hated to carry her all the way to the hospital if she'd been more than a block away.

After K-Lyn situating in a room with the doctors making sure she was stable and diagnosing her, Kaiba returned to his brother's room oblivious to everything around him including the white blond haired man walking down the hall to a different hospital room.

Tensing when he saw Kaiba, Lloyd braced himself in case the CEO noticed him, and sighed in relief when the brown haired teen entered the room without looking his way. Reassured that Kaiba hadn't seen him, Lloyd hurried past the room the CEO had entered, down to the entrance of another hospital room, his suitcase in hand.

Upon seeing the person lying on the bed, he tensed again—in anger this time instead of fear, and he combed his fingers through his hair when he saw the bandage.

"What happened to you?"

"Some b— deciding to play hero jumped us—she nearly cut off my…."

Lloyd raised his hand up to silence the person—one of the punks who'd kidnapped Mokuba—and then he made sure no one was close enough out in the hall to overhear. Even though the door was shut, it was too risky.

"I can see what you mean—that bandage makes it obvious where she cut. However, you failed, I told you to take the boy and call his brother as soon as you got him." Lloyd said his voice only loud enough for the punk to hear. "From how wounded the boy is, you didn't do as I said."

"Ah…we had to hit him to quiet him, didn't want anyone to sit up in bed, however he settled on lying in bed when he felt a pain shoot through him from his groin. "You better get that girl on assault charges…."

"Assault? Assault? How idiotic are you? If Kaiba finds out this girl saved his brother, he'll do everything to clear her name from any crime—and he'll make sure you get arrested once you get out of here."

"You promised this wouldn't happen!"

"If you did everything right, it wouldn't've."

"I better get my share of the money you promised."

"I promised you the money if you succeeded." Lloyd hissed, his eyes narrowed and he rubbed his left temple. "You're giving me a headache, anyway, tell me who this girl is and I'll see if I can't get some dirt on her."

"I don't know who she is; she's not someone I've seen before."

"Fine, just give me a description of her."

"She's an inch or so shorter than I am, really skinny—and she has one hot figure…."

"Hem hem, how about her hair and eyes? Those would be essential bits of description."

"Sorry. She had short, greenish hair and blue, icy eyes. Her skin was pale and she looked anorexic—especially since she wore a trench coat too large for her."

"You seem to have a very detailed description of her even though she knocked you out so fast after ambushing you and your friend."

"I was only knocked out for a minute or so, though when I regained consciousness she knocked me out again and then tied me up. I watched her bit while I was tied up, she didn't realize I was awake at all."

"She tied you up?"

"Yes, I have slight marks on my wrists from the rope; I guess she feared we might regain consciousness and resume what we were doing. Anyway she tied us up, and she stole my phone."

"She stole your phone?"

"Well, your cell phone you told us to use, but she put it back in my pocket after she used it."

"Ah, anything else you want to tell me?"

"There's one thing, the girl, well she looked poor as though she was homeless, but she wore what I swear was an expensive necklace. She kept it hidden under her shirt, but it for a moment or two it dangled where I could see it. Damn, that pendant it had silver outlining its wings, and a golden body, but its eyes were diamond—blue hued and…."

Lloyd's eyes widened at each word the punk said to describe the necklace, and his hands started trembling.

"Did…did the pendant have one of its antennae missing? Golden but silver tipped?"

"Yes, why? Do you know…?"

Remaining silent, Lloyd left the room, ignoring the boy's call to come back, his eyes blank as the description ran through his thoughts.

A girl, hair greenish, with blue eyes, wearing a butterfly pendant necklace—gold body, silver wings—blue diamond eyes, one antennae missing—its wings curled as though in mid flight—god, could it be her? After being gone for five years, could she have returned?

"Kailyn." He muttered rush walking down the hall, darting his eyes from door to door. Quickly he passed a door barely missing it as it opened.

"Lloyd? What are you doing here?" A gruff voice spoke from the open door way, surprising Lloyd who flinched at the sound of it.

"Ah, Kaiba…I went to the company to see you and your secretary told me you were here." Lloyd lied regaining his calm, detached demeanor quickly, fast enough so Kaiba hadn't seen him flinch as he thought of an excuse.

For a second Kaiba stared at him, and then looked at the hallway clock on the wall before looking back at Lloyd.

"I did tell you to meet me at noon. Did you arrive at my company early? It would've taken you more than ten minutes to get here and it is ten minutes after twelve." Kaiba asked, looking Lloyd over curiously before furrowing his brows and sighing. "Stupid city, even children are kidnapping other children."

"Hm? What…." Lloyd muttered, thinking it best to feign innocence of what Kaiba meant.

"Oh? My secretary didn't tell you why I was here?"

"All she said was it was a family emergency and that you had canceled all meetings for the afternoon." Lloyd closed his eyes as though peeved, but really because he needed to think of a good explanation. "That secretary's scatterbrained; I doubt she'd even remember talking to me."

"As soon as I find someone who's more qualified who's also interested in the job, I'll fire her."

"Care to tell me the reason you're here?"

"Some f—ing punks kidnapped my brother and beat him up. He's in that room." Kaiba jerked his head to indicate the room with the open door.

"Oh." Lloyd peeked into the room briefly only to appease Kaiba, since he'd already seen Mokuba when Kaiba hadn't been in the room. "How did he get away from his kidnappers?"

"A girl saved him, and beat those two punks up pretty good. I would've killed them if I'd been there but…."

"If you'd been there I doubt those punks would've had the courage to do anything."

"Heh…. Ah, Lloyd, I require your help, one of the two punks is trying to claim that the girl who saved Mokuba used excessive force on them, and I need you to make any charges on the girl go away. I owe her since she saved Mokuba and she refuses let me repay her in any other way."

"Yes, I'll get on it. Of course I have to know where this girl is, and her name."

"She said her name's K-Lyn and she's in the hospital room two doors down the hall on the right—she collapsed while I was talking to her. The doctor said she's undernourished."

"Oh, you seem to be calm seeing as your brother's the one in the hospital."

"I've seen him two times, and on the second he regained consciousness. He spoke a little to me before falling asleep—heh, he told me I should get back to work because he's all right." Kaiba sighed and closed his eyes briefly, speaking again a second before he opened them. "He told me that because he knows about what you have been talking to me about, and he wants me to find out from you all you know about my late stepfather's daughter."

"Well, I've brought the information I promised to show you today, including a photo." Lloyd opened the briefcase he carried, took out a manila folder, handed it to Kaiba and then closed the briefcase, his attention rapt on Kaiba.

Opening the folder, Kaiba lazily gazed at the photo paper-clipped to it, darting his eyes to the other papers briefly before focusing his attention back on the photo. Eyes widening, Kaiba gaped at the photo, disbelieving what he saw. It was the girl who saved Mokuba, he was sure of it; even though the photo was of a younger girl, he was certain that it was the same girl who saved his brother.

"That photo is five years old; I couldn't find any photos more recent." Lloyd said his eyes gleaming seeing Kaiba's reaction—the CEO's shock could only mean one thing, he'd seen the girl before and Lloyd was certain it was the girl who saved Mokuba.

"Excuse me Lloyd." Kaiba said and started down the hall before Lloyd could reply.


End file.
